The sky over Punk Hazard parted with thunderclouds to clear his path.
Kane pushed the power of the Storm Fruit to its limit.
Hum—
The air beneath his feet spun at high speed, forming an invisible lifting cyclone that steadily lifted his body.
The next moment, his entire form transformed into a gale that tore through the atmosphere, skimming the sea's surface as he raced toward the predetermined coordinates.
Godspeed Luminous.
This was the ultimate speed granted to him by the Storm Fruit.
The Sea Kings along the way didn't even have time to sense his presence, feeling only a fierce gust of wind sweep past before the sea returned to calm.
Two days later.
A solitary island surrounded by towering waterfalls appeared at the horizon where sea met sky.
Wano Country had been reached.
The colossal waterfall cascading from the heavens was the nation's most formidable natural barrier, its turbulent currents powerful enough to shatter any ship attempting to climb it.
But for Kane, this natural obstacle was nothing more than a slightly damp escalator.
He fully transformed his body into its elemental state, merging with the monsoon winds a thousand meters above.
Silently, he pierced through the perpetual haze shrouding Wano Country's skies.
Below him was no longer the boundless blue sea, but a land of peculiar terrain and rustic charm.
Kane released his elemental form, landing lightly atop a massive pine tree.
He had changed out of his conspicuous Navy Admiral uniform.
Now, he wore a deep-purple rōnin haori, with a disguised Zangetsu at his waist and a pair of hastily drawn mustaches pasted on his face.
If not for the eyes that still gleamed with calculation and shrewdness, he looked exactly like a down-and-out samurai who had failed to make it on the high seas and returned home in disgrace.
"Hah, so this is Wano Country."
Standing at the height, Kane didn't spare a glance for the scenery, his gaze firmly locked on the dusty construction site in the distance.
That was Udon.
This was not yet the weaponized capital of factories and toxin-spewing smokestacks from his memories.
At this moment, everything was just beginning to break ground.
Countless ragged prisoners toiled like worker ants in the mud, hauling stones.
The massive foundation pits had just been dug, with crisscrossing scaffolding standing lonely on the desolate plain.
There were no harsh sounds of metalworking, only the dull thuds of pile-driving and the intermittent shouts of overseers carried by the wind.
The air held no scent of industrial sulfur, only the earthy smell of freshly turned soil and the bitterness of wild grass.
But to Kane, this scent was more fragrant than any perfume in the world.
"The planned Seastone Processing Factory, the just-laid foundations for the Large-Caliber Artillery Assembly Line, and that fool Kaido's freshly marked SMILE Raw Material Base…"
Kane took a deep breath, the corners of his mouth curling wider and wider, his face breaking into a kindly smile like that of an old farmer gazing upon his newly sown field of fine seeds.
"What perfect raw material."
"Since the World Government can't reach here, and the factories are still unformed."
"From today onward, this will be my private backyard."
By taking complete control here before it's fully established, the G-5 Branch's weapons supply will become entirely independent.
Whatever specifications of weapons we want, we'll manufacture them.
We could even resell them to the World Government and earn double the money!
Turning this lawless land still in its infancy into our own nest.
This thought grew wildly in Kane's mind, instantly transforming into a towering tree.
With his mind made up, Kane suppressed his aura, lightly tapped the pine needles with his toes, and his figure faded into the wind as he sped toward the center of this land—the direction of Kuri.
Kuri, the market in front of the Daimyo's Mansion.
Despite it being daytime, the place was more bustling than during a festival.
Men, women, and children formed a huge circle, with some even climbing onto rooftops just to get a better view.
Their faces held no reverence for the ruler, only undisguised mockery and the excitement of watching a monkey show.
"Look, look! The foolish lord is here again!"
"Shh... keep your voice down. If the Kozuki Clan's retainers hear, we'll be in trouble."
"What's there to fear? He himself has no shame, why should we worry for him?"
Amidst the roaring laughter, Kane blended into the very back of the crowd. Through the gaps between a few burly men's shoulders, he caught sight of the legendary man.
Kozuki Oden.
The top-tier powerhouse once praised by both Roger and Whitebeard, the one who left Kaido with his only lifelong scar, who reached the Final Island and learned all the truths of the world.
At this moment.
He stood bare-chested and naked in the mud.
Wearing nothing but a loincloth, he held two broken pot lids picked up from who-knows-where. Like a mentally underdeveloped fool, he twisted his robust muscles, performing absurdly ridiculous movements.
"Hey! Ha! Hey! Ha!"
With each wiggle of his buttocks, he let out a discordant shout.
"..."
The slightly mocking expression on Kane's face gradually turned cold.
Although he had long known about this part of the story, witnessing it firsthand still stirred a sense of absurdity that made his stomach churn with nausea.
For a few hundred civilians held hostage?
For a verbal promise from his enemy, without even a written agreement?
To abandon force, to give up the chance to rally the nation's daimyo to rise up, and instead resort to this clownish self-gratification, begging for the tyrant's mercy?
"Is this the so-called Wano-style hero?"
"Even if you charged into the Flower Capital right now with your sword and were chopped into mincemeat by Kaido and Orochi, I'd still respect you as a man."
Kane flicked a coin into the air, caught it again, and a flash of utter contempt crossed his eyes.
"Kozuki Oden, you're not naive."
"You're irredeemably stupid."
The most foolish thing in this world is to discuss trust with beasts who play by no rules.
That treacherous scoundrel Orochi, paired with Kaido, that violence-worshipping madman—if such a combination could keep a promise to "leave after five years," then pigs could climb trees and perform ballet!
Kane knew the rest of the script all too well.
Oden would dance naked here like a clown for a full five years.
During those five years, he wouldn't save a single person. Instead, he would personally destroy the prestige and popular support the Kozuki Clan had accumulated in Wano Country over centuries.
By the time he realized he'd been deceived, Kaido's forces would already be deeply entrenched, and the samurai and people who had once been willing to die for him would have long lost all hope in him.
"What a perfect hand, played utterly terribly."
Kane shook his head.
He had originally thought that if Oden had even a shred of intelligence, they might be able to cooperate, using him as a blade to stab Kaido a few times.
But now it seemed that this fool's usefulness was even less than that of a stray dog on the roadside.
A dog, when kicked, would at least turn around and bite.
This guy, after being struck on the left cheek, would only offer the right one as well.
"However…"
Kane watched the figure struggling vigorously in the mud, and a brilliant, yet utterly wicked idea surfaced in his mind.
Since you love playing the clown so much, since you're so obsessed with self-sacrificial martyrdom…
Then I'll grant your wish.
I'll make your "sacrifice" more meaningful.
For example…
Becoming the first stepping stone for me to take over this country.